IDOMENI, Greece — Greek authorities sent hundreds of police into the country’s largest informal refugee camp Tuesday to support the gradual evacuation of the Idomeni site on the Macedonian border.
The left-led government has pledged that police will not use force, and says the operation is expected to last about a week to 10 days. Journalists were blocked from covering inside the camp.
By about midday 23 buses carrying a total 1,110 people had left Idomeni, heading to new refugee camps in northern Greece, police said, while earth-moving machinery was used to clear abandoned tents. No violence was reported.
Vicky Markolefa, a representative of the Doctors Without Borders charity, said the operation was proceeding “very smoothly” and without incident. “We hope it will continue like that,” she said.
